A small plot of land in a mountain village

I just finished answering the phone, and now someone else is trying to plead for him. That urban management guy seems to know a lot of people. The higher-ups don't seem to care much. Just let him go. It's a small matter anyway, why bother making a big deal out of it? It would be terrible if they made things difficult for me later.

He pushed open the interrogation room door and said to the police officers present, "Sign a document and release him!"

"Understood." Although the police officers present didn't know why they had to release the person, the station chief had spoken, so the matter still had to be handled. Anyway, if something went wrong, they wouldn't be the ones to suffer.

Steelhead was surprised that they released him so soon after he came in. He loosened his grip on his hands and said with a smile, "Thank you for your leniency, Chief. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now."

Watching the departing figure, it seemed that he, a minor official, was not as useful as the urban management officer. It was truly pathetic, since the director was transferred down from above, and his power was basically undermined by the deputy director.

Passing by another interrogation room, I saw Zhang Niu standing in front of the door. "Kid, enjoy yourself. I'm leaving now. Next time, remember to stay away, or you won't be so lucky."

Damn it, what's the police doing? They let this guy out? He cursed inwardly.

Steelhead laughed heartily.

His own urban management officers were waiting at the entrance; it seems this director knows how to handle people.

My belt cell phone rang.

"Are you out yet? Are you alright?" a heavy voice said through the microphone.

"It's nothing! I just came out. Thanks for the help. Do you know who reported it?" Why did the police come? The police usually don't get involved in urban management cases. Why did they come this time?

"I don't know the details, it seems like a passerby reported it! You're behaving like this in the street, watch your step, or you might not be safe next time." His tone suddenly became much harsher.

"I understand. I'll stay put and not cause any trouble during this time, is that alright?" Steelhead said respectfully.

"That would be best. Contact me again if needed."

My friend is truly a good friend. That small favor last time was well worth it; he came to help so quickly.

"Let's go."

Many people in the police station naturally knew that although Gangtou was no longer a policeman, he had become the captain of the urban management team, and he was still as imposing as before.

Just as they reached the entrance, a car drove in, surrounding Steel Head.

"Hey, Secretary, look, this guy's out."

As Xiao Dong parked his car, he saw Gang Tou swarming away.

When Lao Zhu came in, Lao Zhang, who was standing next to him, had already reminded him that he didn't know who had given the authority to release the person. If he hadn't come, he really wouldn't have known about this situation, and the matter would probably have just faded away.

They were only in for a few hours before leaving. How do the police operate?

Old Zhu, bursting out in a rage, strode towards the police station, arousing the curiosity of many in the station about who had arrived.

Anyone with discerning eyes could tell from the imposing aura emanating from Old Zhu that he was no ordinary person.

Some of the more familiar faces quickly slipped into the office; these were high-ranking provincial officials.

I'll just keep this to myself and won't say anything more. It's better to stay put and not worry about it. I don't need to look to know that it's definitely aimed at the bureau chief.

The director was sitting in his chair, having just released the person, when the phone rang. The source of the information was really fast.

The door was pushed open with a bang, and Secretary Zhu entered.

"Ah, Secretary, what brings you here?" The director was about to start scolding when he saw the person barging in, but it turned out to be Secretary Zhu.

Old Zhu sat on the sofa by himself, while Xiao Dong closed the door and stood next to the secretary.

The director looked at the secretary with trepidation. He had just seen him at the meeting this morning, and now he came to him in the afternoon with a cold expression. Had something happened?

The director stammered as he stepped forward and said, "Secretary, I didn't know you were here...?" He didn't dare to ask for too much detail, so he could only ask this brief question.

Old Zhu ignored the director's words and said unhurriedly, "Xiao Dong, make a call to the Urban Construction Bureau and ask the director to come over. Oh, and also bring back those people who went out."

"Okay." He took out his phone and dialed.

The urban management team, although mostly composed of unofficial personnel, is in a real mess right now. Old Zhu, who came in, was furious at the sight.

The director, standing next to Secretary Zhu, didn't dare to move. Releasing people so casually this time had really backfired; he guessed the secretary had come for this reason, and he was pondering how to respond.

Old Zhu asked indifferently, "Who gave you permission to release him?"

A simple sentence left the director speechless; being an official is truly different.

The director frowned, unsure of what to say. With the Party Secretary present, any lie told would be immediately obvious.

"I don't know how to say it! I still want to keep it a secret." Secretary Zhu stared at the director and said each word clearly.

These words struck the director like a heavy blow.

Old Zhu's few simple words had an effect; small people are always a pathetic existence in front of big people.

"Knock knock—"

Xiao Dong walked over and opened the door. The person who came in was Li Ming, the director of the Urban Construction Bureau.

When Li Ming received the phone call in the office building, his heart skipped a beat. Why would Secretary Zhu ask him to come over so readily?

I only heard that Secretary Zhu turned down a lunch appointment at noon and didn't know where he went. Why did he suddenly turn to the police station? Was he on an incognito visit?

"Secretary Zhu, I don't know what I need you to call me about." A glance at the director beside him revealed that he had clearly been given a good scolding by Secretary Zhu.

His subordinates all knew that Secretary Zhu was usually very polite to people, but if you crossed his line, no matter whose subordinate you were, once solid evidence was found, you would not have a good outcome.

On the way, Li Ming made many phone calls and asked many people what was going on, but they all said they didn't know. Suddenly, Secretary Zhu returned and appeared at the police station.

There's only one explanation: the problem lies with the police station, but the fact that they specifically called on themselves is quite intriguing.

Seeing Li Ming's eyes darting around, Old Zhu knew he was trying to figure out what he was thinking. "Stop guessing. I called you over to ask you how you, as a member of the urban management team, actually do your job. I hope you can explain that clearly."

The last few words were pronounced with a particularly heavy emphasis, and both Chairman Zhang and Xiao Dong could hear them clearly.

Secretary Zhu's words carried considerable weight, and we await Li Ming's response.

Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. The calmer Secretary Zhu remained, the more serious the matter seemed—this had become a common occurrence in the province.

Saying it was good wouldn't work, but saying it was bad would be suicidal. So, I could only offer a perfunctory reply: "I admit my work performance wasn't great, but I'll try my best to do better next time."

After Li Ming finished speaking, he would occasionally glance at the secretary's face, seemingly having learned quite a bit about the art of maintaining a pleasant demeanor.

That was clearly just a perfunctory remark; anyone with eyes could see that.

To Li Ming's surprise, Old Zhu's previously serious face suddenly broke into a smile. This left Li Ming completely bewildered.

"Very good! Just do your best to handle this well. You can go back now!"

Who knew the secretary would say that? What did he mean? It was a question swirling in Li Ming's mind. He couldn't back down, and he couldn't ask questions. Being a low-ranking official was really difficult.

Old Zhu waved his hand, "Go back and write a report!"

"Oh," Li Ming replied, and quietly left through the door. He wiped the cold sweat from his brow, turned on his phone, and saw that quite a few people had already called to ask what had happened.

Although Secretary Zhu came down for an inspection, people from all walks of life above were watching closely to see what would happen in this small county. For them, this was another opportunity to make a big fuss about it from above.

After listening to the phone call, Li Ming broke out in a cold sweat. Only now did he understand what writing a report meant.

Not knowing who had caused the trouble and implicated him, Li Ming's face was extremely grim.

Gangtou and his group had just returned to the Urban Construction Bureau when they stepped through the door. Many police officers were already waiting there. As soon as Gangtou appeared, the police rushed forward and arrested him.

"Which branch office are you from? We can talk things over, don't do this." Steel Head struggled desperately.

"Behave yourself. You got away last time, but you won't be so lucky this time. Come with us!" Then they got into the car and drove away.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye. Their heads were taken away by the police, and everyone heard clearly what the police had just said.

Steel Head, inside the car, felt relieved after hearing those words; he hadn't expected the police to discover the matter so quickly.

No matter what, just hang in there. Your friends who are making money outside should help you get through this difficult time. Last time, they easily got you out of trouble.

This time, Steelhead was still full of confidence, withstood the interrogation, and nothing happened.

As soon as Li Ming left, Xiao Dong's phone rang. He saw it was a call from the provincial government.

He whispered in the secretary's ear.

After taking the phone, Old Zhu didn't say anything, but just listened quietly. "You guys handle it. I'll come back tomorrow morning and decide then."

After hanging up the phone, he coldly stared at the director in front of him. "Write down everything you know! Sigh!!"

He then stood up and walked towards the door, his expression even colder than when he came in, probably because of what he heard on the phone!

Everyone says being an official is good, but it's not easy to outwit them. Everyone wants to climb higher; ambition is insatiable. You pull me, I pull you.

"Fatty, I'm leaving now. Contact me if you need anything." The bald man who came out made a gesture to make a phone call before leaving with his henchmen.

Zhang Niu, who came out from behind, watched the bald man walk away and looked towards the doorway. He remembered that he had left through this same doorway last time. He said to the fat man next to him, "Thanks for bringing people over."

Zhang Niu was amused by the fat man's words, "With your physique, it's already impressive that you can still run. You want to chase after someone? Don't even dream about it."

"Forget it, let's not argue anymore. We should probably thank Chairman Zhang now."

Only then did we realize that Chairman Zhang was nowhere to be found. There was no one in front of the door, and his car hadn't come over. Could it be that he didn't come and just called from home?

"Hey, isn't this the car that hit me on the road? How come it's here?" he muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the black sedan.

As he spoke, he walked forward. It was indeed the car. Why was it parked here? Zhang Niu was suspicious of the car, but he still had a good impression of the driver.

The fat man noticed Zhang Niu muttering something and circling the car. When he saw the license plate, he was stunned. Wasn't this the official car of a provincial leader?

Thinking back, I felt a chill of fear. I hadn't been paying attention. Could there have been provincial leaders sitting in the car?

The thought that popped into his head made the fat man break out in a cold sweat: My God, he actually ran into the legendary cadre in this place.

PS: Third update. (To be continued. For more chapters and to support the author, please log in and read the official version!)